Uncut Gems begins in an Ethiopian mine and then fades into a voyage into Howard Ratner’s (Adam Sandler) body as he receives a colonoscopy. The film also ends with another visual journey inside his body, which transforms into images that recall both the mines and the precious opal that is so important to the plot. Between these two points, it is not easy to sit still; the Safdie brothers (Good Time) have crafted yet another film that places a character in increasingly high-risk situations that careen between comedy and genuine menace. Uncut Gems is nowhere close to relaxing, and is none the worse for it. 

Some of the decade’s best films have been characterized by an emphasis on stillness, silence, gesture, and fragments of awkward conversation: Leave No Trace, Moonlight, and others. The Safdie brothers take the opposite approach. Their scenes are manically full of noise, chaos, quick cuts, and dialogue that comes fast and hits hard. Their rich, distinctive soundscape is constantly bustling with street noise, overlapping dialogue, and, in one especially frantic scene, a door buzzer. If we close our eyes we would still be very much in their world.

They have found a near perfect vessel for their style in Howard, a jeweler with a taste for sports gambling. He’s a figure both magnetic and maddening to those who know him, multiple parties are after him for money that he owes them, and his marriage is crumbling. He also is capable of inspiring reverence and loyalty. No matter how much trouble he’s in, he’s always ready for a bet that places him in greater danger. The film is ultimately about him, the unraveling and rebuilding of his personality, and through him our collective fascination with wealth and our need to always have more.

The role was conceived with Sandler in mind, and it shows. It’s easily one of his best performances. Sandler is not an actor one usually associates with a tremendous range, though he has admirably done more serious work in Punch-Drunk Love and Funny People. It’s not that he is unrecognizable per se here; it’s that the directors have managed to use what is best in him to the utmost. In their hands, Sandler is certainly selfish, but he is also so convincingly a romantic dreamer that he seems to have convinced himself that he really is going to pay back everyone he owes—he fully expects everyone he knows to be as fully wrapped up in his fantasies as he is.

The rest of the cast is also strong, a healthy mix of seasoned professionals and newcomers, and with them the Safdie brothers have crafted a compelling and furiously alive portrait of a New York City rarely seen on film. They do not seem to have lost interest in the city that is dead to so many of us. Consequently, we feel almost as though we are seeing the world anew. There is a wonderful cameo from Judd Hirsch. Kevin Garnett very convincingly plays himself, as does the Weeknd. Idina Menzel is effective as Howard’s wife, and LaKeith Stanfield is a wonderful, calmer counterpoint to Howard’s manic energy. First timer Julia Fox, as his sales associate and mistress, does excellently, though some viewers may feel that she is ultimately seen too much from the male gaze, which, after all, is Howard’s.

Still, the Safdies admirably portray these characters without any attempt at moralizing or hiding flaws. It’s difficult not to submit to this film, which is easily one of year’s most compelling.